Video-Based Walkthrough for NWN2: Mask of the Betrayer
GANN, M CN HAGSPAWN SHAMAN 17
Gann is along for the whole ride, in part because he becomes Valeria's romantic interest. Gann's abilities naturally lend himself to being a combination of healer, buffer, and damage caster. Aside from that, where do I go from there?
One approach is to have him use a Shortbow as per his feat selection upon joining the party. My problem with that approach is that the one Shortbow that would actually make it worthwhile is not available until far, far too late in the game to make me willing to wait for it.
Instead, I take advantage of the fact that he already has the Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat to make him a credible katana-wielding warrior as well. That requires getting his armor class as high as possible, and a Strength enhancing belt. Gann in turn can augment his combat prowess with spells like Premonition, Storm Avatar, and Flaming Weapon.
Stats
- Str 10
- Dex 14
- Con 14
- Int 10
- Wis 20
- Cha 14
- 20th level: +1 Cha
- 24th level: +1 Cha
- 28th level: +1 Cha
It will be Charisma all the way for Gann, in order to increase the DC of his spells. Also, a Charisma of 17 will mesh seamleslly with the +9 Charisma bonus that I'll add to his cloak.
Skills
Gann emphasizes Concentration, Spellcraft, Spot and Survival.
He starts off by getting 10 skill points in Use Magic Device, even though he has to pay on a 2 for 1 basis. 10 skill points, plus his own Charisma bonus plus a Cloak with a Charisma bonus of at least +6, will allow him to wear the (soon to be further enchanted) Boots of the Sun Soul +5 without a hitch.
After that, he plays catch up by emphasizing Spellcraft so that he can qualify for the epic spells.
Feats
Starting Feats:
- Dodge
- Improved Critical (Shortbow)
- Point Blank Shot
- Weapon Focus (Shortbow)
- Zen Archery
- Weapon Proficiency (Exotic)
- Alertness
- Luck of Heroes
18th level: Tower Shield Proficiency - Allows Gann to use the Brown Dragon Shield.
21st level: Craft Wondrous Items - Allows Gann to use his Tortoise Shell spell in conjunction with 4 Brilliant Power Essences a pop to add an interim +5 deflection armor class bonus to a cloak. He can then upgrade it to a whopping +8 bonus once he reaches his 30th level.
23st level: Empower Spell - The rationale is much the same as it was for Qara during the OC. Gann can on the fly decide to unleash either a Fire Storm or a Call Lightning Storm that will unleash x 1.5 the usual damage.
Vampiric Feast - A spell that can inflict instant death on multiple foes, without hurting party members, and with a considerable +5 boost to the DC.
25th level: Spell Penetration - Gann is arguably my main damage caster, so it definitely makes sense for him to pick up this line of feats in order to maximize his chance of hurting spell resistant monsters, of which there are many in the expansion.
26th level: Greater Spell Penetration - Taking it even further.
27th level: Epic Gate - The best summons in the game. Summons one Balor. Once it falls, a second Balor will take its place.
29th level: Hellball - The epitome of damage casting that inflicts multiple sources of damage over a large area, and the damage cannot be avoided by Evasion.
Epic Spell Penetration - Rounding things out.
Spells
Starting 0 Level Orisons:
- Cure Mild Wounds
- Flare
- Light
- Resist
- Virtue
Starting 1st Level Spells:
- Cure Light Wounds
- Endure Elements
- Entangle
- Foundation of Stone
- Lesser Vigor
- Summon Creature I
Starting 2nd Level Spells:
- Barkskin
- Body of the Sun
- Creeping Cold
- Gust of Wind
- Lesser Restoration
Starting 3rd Level Spells:
- Call Lightning
- Cure Moderate Wounds
- Neutralize Poison
- Protection from Energy
- Remove Disease
- Summon Creature III
Starting 4th Level Spells:
- Dispel Magic
- Flame Strike
- Freedom of Movement
- Hold Monster
- Moon Bolt
- Summon Creature IV
Starting 5th Level Spells:
- Call Lightning Storm
- Cure Critical Wounds
- Death Ward
- Rejuvenation Cocoon
- Restoration
- Summon Creature V
Starting 6th Level Spells:
- Energy Immunity, Greater Stoneskin, Stonehold, Summon Creature VI, Tortoise Shell
Starting 7th Level Spells:
- Harm
- Heal
- Summon Creature VII
- Sunbeam
Starting 8th Level Spells:
- Bombardment
- Summon Creature VIII
- Sunburst
18th level: Storm of Vengeance - A nifty offensive spell that won't harm party members, but can both damage and stun multiple enemies with a very large area of effect.
Burst of Glacial Wrath - Like an enhanced Cone of Cold. Its damage maxes out at 25d6, and will freeze its targets in place if they are reduced to 10 or fewer hit points.
Mass Drown - A spell that will reduce all enemies in its range to 10% of their hit points, but without affecting party members. The beauty of this spell during Mask of the Betrayer is that it can set up its targets for the protagonist to use her spirit-eating powers on as a finishing blow.
Premonition - Gann participates in a lot of melee combat himself, so it definitely makes sense for him to take this spell.
Fire Storm - Gann can really inflict a lot of damage on monsters that surround the party when he uses the Empowered version of this spell.
Regeneration - Can be useful. Gets even more powerful during epic levels because it regenerates 10% of maximum hit points per round.
*Note* I also replace Summon Creature II with Flaming Weapon - Summon Creature II is worse than useless during an epic-level campaign. Flaming Weapon allows Gann to add another +1d8 fire damage to any weapon, even a weapon that already has four or more enchantments. He will often use it to add extra fire damage to other party members' weapons, which I don't enchant with extra fire damage.
20th level: Elemental Swarm: Not as potent as it might have been during the OC, but it can still be useful to bring in a series of meat shields that can hold up the enemies for a time.
Storm Avatar: Now Gann has the option to Haste himself, immunize himself against electrical damage, and add +3d6 electrical damage, even to a weapon that already has four or more enchantments.
Creeping Doom: Gives Gann another damage resource, and multiple instances of the spell will stack with each other.
*Note* I now also replace Summon Creature IV with Ice Storm. This spell becomes decidedly more useful at epic levels. At 30th level an Empowered Ice Storm can inflict about 4-24 blunt damage and 18d6 cold damage. The damage also cannot be avoided by use of the Evasion ability.
Inventory
- Primary Weapon: Shinigami Blade (Cold Iron Katana +8, +5d6 acid damage, +5d6 cold damage, 10% Blindness / 4 rounds DC=26) - Gann already has the Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat, so it's natural to have him use a katana which has a better damage range than other swords. Note that I deliberately chose bonus acid damage and cold damage for Gann's weapon. The reason being that Gann can add fire damage through the Flaming Weapon spell, and electrical damage through the Storm Avatar spell, both of which will stack with the other bonus damage sources of the weapon. Cold Iron also allows him to overcome damage reduction by any Fey spirits or creatures (e.g. Telthor), which are now quite frequent in Mask of the Betrayer. The Blindness power will also work on critical-immune enemies.
- Shield: Black Dragon Shield (Tower Shield +8, +75% acid resistance, Distintegrate 1 / day, +8 regeneration) - Obtained the Brown Dragon Shield from the Shadowmasters near the harbor in Shadow Mulsantir. I raise its enhancement bonus from +5 to +8, and then add +8 regeneration. Acid resistance is sugar on top.
- Helmet: Thieves' Hood (immunity to knockdown, immunity to poison, +1 Concentration, +2 Open Lock, +2 Search, Rogues only) - Imported from the OC. The immunity to knockdown and immunity to poison, both rare benefits, are the real perks for Gann when wearing this hood.
- Amulet: Shelter from the Storm (+5 natural bonus to armor class, +40 fire resistance, +40 electrical resistance, +7 saving throws) - I purchased the Amulet of Natural Armor +5 from the Wychlaran in Mulsantir, and then had Valeria add the other enchantments to it. Definitely a powerful item once I get the finished product. Gann rounds things out by getting his acid resistance from his Brown Dragon Shield, and by getting cold resistance after adding the Shadow of the Void essence to his Mithral Chainshirt.
- Midnight Dreams (Mithral Chainshirt +8, immunity to critical hits / sneak attacks, +8 regeneration, +100% immunity to cold damage, -25% vulnerability to fire damage) - Custom made and enchanted. Functionally it's exactly the same armor that Valeria wears, and the reasons are pretty much identical as well. It counts as a Light Armor, so Gann doesn't have to take any additional feats to wear it. It takes full advantage of his Dexterity bonus after Gann obtains a Dexterity of 22 through his Forest Walkers boots.
- Cloak: Forestqueen's Blessing (+8 deflection bonus to armor class, immunity to ability / level draining, +9 Charisma, +5 to saving throws vs. fire, +25 fire resistance) - I imported the Cloak of Blackflame from the OC. Gann uses three Pristine Power Essences and the Tortoise Shell spell to raise the deflection bonus to +8. Valeria then uses Malleate Spirit and three Pristine Spirit Essences to add +9 to Charisma, which will boost the saving throw DC of Gann's spells. Lastly, three Pristine Fire Essences and the Endure Elements spell adds the saving throw bonus and resistance against fire damage. I added fire resistance to compensate for the fire resistance penalty that comes with having applied the Shield of the Void Essence to Gann's Mithral Chain Shirt.
- Gloves: Thicket Favors (+1 9th level spell for Druids or Spirit Shamans, +1 4th level spell for Rangers, +6 Wisdom, +2 saving throws, +3 regeneration) - The bonus spell, saving throw bonus, and regeneration bonus are always welcome. In most instances, a Wisdom bonus would have to come through an amulet since the only possible enchantment for adding a Wisdom bonus to an item has to be applied to an amulet. The Wisdom bonus frees up Gann's amulet slot for a an Amulet of Natural Armor that will have elemental resistances and a saving throw bonus added to it.
- 1st Ring: Ring of Power (+15 cold resistance, +15 electrical resistance, +15 fire resistance, Freedom of Movement, +1 regeneration) - Already part of his starting equipment. Freedom of Movement is especially welcome in Mask of the Betrayer, so as to protect him from Bigby's type spells.
- 2nd Ring: Mourningring (+6 saving throws, Create Greater Undead (18) 1 / day, Healing Circle (16) 2 / day, +9 saving throws vs. electricity) - Found in a chest in the Founder's Sanctum, and added the saving throw bonus vs. elecriticity afterwards. The saving throw bonuses are always welcome. The other spell-like benefits are sugar on top.
- Belt: Darjemma Girdle (immunity to disease, immunity to death magic, +9 Fortitude saving throws, +6 Strength) - I obtained the Ceremonial Uthgardt Belt after helping Baumar and Yelina in Mulsantir. I then the Fortitude saving throw bonus to +9. I also add +6 Strength to the Belt. Gann spends a fair amount of time on the front lines cutting down the opposition with his Katana, so a belt that adds both +6 Strength and +9 to Fortitude saving throws is most certainly welcome.
- Boots: Forest Walkers (+5 dodge bonus to armor class, +8 Dexterity, +8 Constitution, +9 Reflex saving throws) - Purchased Boots of the Sun Soul +5 from Katya in Mulsantir, with further enchantments added by Valeria. The Constitution bonus and dodge bonus to armor class helps Gann's ability to fight in close quarter combat. The Dexterity bonus allows Gann to take full advantage of his Mithral Chainshirt. The bonus to Reflex saving throws is sugar on top. He'll need a skill rank of 15 in Use Magic Device to be able to wear them.
*Evil* Gann purchases the Naught Katana from Omaga in the Nightshore. I raise the Katana's enhancement bonus to +8, and then add +5d6 cold damage. The reason is that acid damage is not available as a weapon enchantment for the evil party, so going with the Naught Katana with added cold damage is a way for Gann to benefit from both the Flame Weapon and Storm Avatar spells when he so chooses.
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